Human resources management (HRM) and strategic planning work in tandem to drive organizational success. While HRM focuses on managing and organizing a company’s workforce, strategic planning lays the roadmap for achieving long-term goals and objectives. These functions are intertwined, as an organization’s human capital plays a pivotal role in executing its strategic vision. Strategic human resource management (SHRM) emphasizes aligning HR practices with an organization’s business strategy to maximize workforce productivity and achieve a competitive advantage.
The University of West Florida (UWF) online Master of Business Administration (MBA) with an emphasis in Human Resources Management program prepares students with the expertise to integrate SHRM in their roles. Through courses like Strategic Management and Policy Formulation and Strategic Issues in Human Resources Management, students learn to align workforce planning with overarching corporate strategies.
What Are Human Resource Management and Planning?
Effective human resource management (HRM) is essential for every company, as it involves creating policies and procedures that support business goals. HRM fosters a culture that reflects the company’s values and empowers employees to be collaborative and productive. Its main objectives include acquiring and developing talent and improving communication and cooperation among staff. HRM also includes functions such as job analysis, managing workforce operations and driving professional development initiatives and programs.
Human resource planning (HRP) is a continuous process that helps companies effectively utilize their skilled workforce. It involves making decisions about hiring, promotions, conflict resolution and training. By aligning employees with appropriate roles and addressing organizational needs, HRP contributes to the company’s profitability and productivity.
Applying Strategic Human Resources Management and Planning for Organizational Success
Unlike traditional HR, which focuses on day-to-day employee management, SHRM first understands the organization’s goals and then develops people-centric solutions to achieve them. This strategic approach elevates the importance of key HR functions like recruitment, talent management, compensation and succession planning.
Standard SHRM programs and policies include the following:
- Performance management systems to track and improve employee contributions
- Training and development initiatives to identify and address skill gaps
- Compensation and benefits packages to attract and retain talent
- Employee relations efforts to cultivate a positive, collaborative culture and work environment
- Succession management to groom high-potential employees for leadership roles
A human resource strategic plan provides a long-term roadmap for meeting an organization’s future HR needs. It involves in-depth analysis of current human resources to predict the upcoming talent landscape and ensure the right people, roles and skill sets are in place to reach operational goals. An HR strategic plan also monitors social, business, technological and regulatory trends impacting the workforce, allowing for flexibility and adaptability in unforeseen scenarios.
Why Is Strategic Human Resources Management Important?
Beyond just acquiring and developing talent, SHRM lays the foundation for cultivating an engaged and productive workforce. Through carefully designed initiatives, effective SHRM directly improves employee performance, reduces costly turnover and boosts overall productivity. A forward-looking SHRM approach also empowers organizations to proactively prepare for future workforce needs.
Through predictive analysis of industry trends and evolving skills, businesses can anticipate personnel gaps, identify training requirements and build robust talent pipelines. This foresight ensures having the right people with the right capabilities needed for sustainable advantage.
Most crucially, SHRM positions HR as a strategic partner shaping business strategy from the ground up rather than just as an administrative support function. With a voice at the strategy table, HR ensures personnel factors underpin major decisions, including market expansions, product roadmaps and cultural initiatives.
Become a Strategic Leader With an HR Management Degree
Strategically reallocating talent to align with organizational plans allows companies to significantly outperform competitors. Rather than the traditional approach of interchangeable roles based on hierarchy, top talent must be purposefully placed into critical value-driving positions central to the company’s priorities and culture. Leading innovators like Apple are prime examples, obsessively staffing key R&D and user experience roles with highly creative, skilled personnel.
To enable this strategic talent management, HR must develop robust analytics capabilities, and its leaders must position themselves as internal service providers who ensure maximum returns on human capital investments. This involves using data dashboards to regularly review talent metrics with executives and make informed staffing decisions aligned with business objectives. The impact is clear: Organizations with strong cultural foundations outperform median companies with 60% higher shareholder returns, according to McKinsey & Company.
In today’s dynamic corporate landscape, SHRM is pivotal for driving sustainable organizational success by unlocking the full potential of human capital as a powerful competitive advantage. UWF’s online MBA – Human Resources Management program develops a comprehensive SHRM skillset. Graduates are prepared to forge the vital integration between people strategy and core business goals for peak organizational performance.
Learn more about UWF’s online Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in Human Resources Management program.
